Bridget Burkholder, the woman being held in an Oregon jail who was denied her request for an abortion unless she could post $6500 in bail, has now been released from jail after pleading no contest to attempted arson. Burkholder was transferred to a mental health facility where she was reported to have been “stablized” and later released into her mother’s custody. Burkholder was sentenced to 20 days in jail with time served, as well as probation.
Burkholder requested access to an abortion in mid-July, while being held prior to her trial. The District Attorney and others rejected the request, calling the procedure “optional” and stating that they wouldn’t let her “have her breasts reduced in this state” either. It is unclear whether Burkholder, who was allegedly nearing the end of the first trimester while being held, was able to receive the procedure or not.
